Posted on 06/26/2011 3:08:13 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A recent attack on a 75-year-old woman by two pit bulls fuels the ongoing debate as to whether or not the breed should be considered dangerous.
The woman suffered severe injuries, including multiple bites and a heart attack.
The incident has reignited the debate: Are pit bulls unsafe?
Dangerous Dogs
The controversy surrounding pit bulls has been argued for decades. A special report released by the U.S. Center for Disease Control in 2000 displayed that pit bulls were responsible for the majority of dog bite related fatalities.
The report has since received an overwhelming amount of dissonance from pit bull advocates. The CDC later released a statement saying there was no accurate way to identify which breeds are more likely to kill.
However, advocates at the nonprofit organization Dogsbite.org performed its own study that revealed more than 50 percent of fatal dog attacks are from pit bulls. The Texas-based website serves to warn the public about dangerous dog breeds and educate the public about possible solutions to prevent pit bull attacks.
Colleen Lynn, founder of Dogsbite.org, said the example of the recent attack exposes pit bulls as a hazardous breed.
“We know not all pit bulls are going to attack,” she said. “Pit bulls are not born vicious, they are born dangerous. If you’re going to own one you need to know.” Lynn believes both genetics and a dog’s surroundings play a role in dog attacks.
“There’s no question that environment can play a role,” Lynn said. “But pit bulls bite, clamp, hold and shake. That’s totally genetic.”
Lynn suggested the pit bulls that attacked Emako Mendoza were displaying typical pit bull breed behavior. She said keeping multiple pit bulls elevates the risk, especially with puppies.
Lynn worries that the dogs’ owners will not be able to pay for Mendoza’s injuries. Because of instances like this, Lynn wants to enforce legislation, which would make pit bull owners obtain insurance.
“These dogs can cause serious damage,” she said. “It’s very self-centered considering the risk they could pose.”
Nature vs. Nurture
Are pit bulls attack dogs by nature, or does training play a role?
The Pit Bull Rescue Central website advocates against the notion that the breed itself is dangerous. Marcy Setter runs the website educating dog owners and restoring the pit bull image.
“It’s not a breed issue, it’s a dog issue,” Setter said. “I hear about dogs getting loose and that relates directly to irresponsible dog owners.”
Setter said it’s important to socialize any dog, and expose them to as much as possible.
“A dog is a dog at the end of the day, and all dogs bite,” she said. “Every breed has attacks or fatalities against them.”
Despite negative connotations people have of pit bulls, Setter said people are still interested in adopting them because they are friendly and loyal.
“I would tell a new dog owner the same thing I’d tell other dog owners,” she said. “Make sure to socialize the animal with other dogs and animals.”
Taking Responsibility
San Diego seems to be a pit bull hot spot; simply stroll by Ocean Beach and one will see owners walking pit bulls along the boardwalk.
Michaela Myers, a volunteer with the Pit Bull Rescue San Diego, said pit bulls are a popular dog type not just in San Diego, but also across the nation. As a pit bull owner, Myers believes the dogs make good pets despite unfavorable attention they often receive.
“They’re goofy, loving and great companions,” she said. Myers has two pit bull mixes, one that is a certified therapy dog.
Myers said some people want pit bulls for the wrong reasons, such as enhancing their image as someone who is tough.
“When they become popular with the wrong people for the wrong reasons pit bulls get a bad rep,” she said. Myers said the recent attack must take into account how the dogs were kept and treated.
At the San Diego league experienced trainers evaluate pit bulls to determine whether or not they are temperamental, according to Myers.
The local rescue league also encourages newly adopted dog owners to understand the image they present with their pit bull.
“I do think dog owners have an extra responsibility because the public scrutinizes,” she said. “We want them to be extra responsible with how they present themselves with their dog.”
” “Every breed has attacks or fatalities against them.””
Yeah, I can see where my golden retriever would rip apart someone. At worst he would go fetch your chihuahua f it got loose.
I don’t know why this is even a debate. Don’t people have any inkling of the history of selective breeding of dogs and other animals? Dogs were selectively bred to have specific traits that were beneficial to their human owners.
Pointers and Setters point, retrievers retrieve, sheep dogs herd livestock, and other dogs perform other tasks they’ve been bred to perform. Pit bulls were bred to attack and fight, and sooner or later that can come out no matter how responsibly or irresponsibly their owner’s have raised them.
Pit Bulls and Meth Labs go together very well in my part of the country.
LOL I’ve had goldens for years.
Our current one is a rescue, 100# rambunctious teenager.
He’d never bite anybody, just knock them over with momentum.
Sometimes when he’s done licking the grandchildren I have to towel them off.
Targets.
Sorry to the pitbull fans out there, but if I catch one roaming freely I will shoot it. They are far too dangerous to kids.
One of my tenants had a cat that was 12 years old. Two pitbulls roaming the neighborhood tore the cat apart, in her kitchen.
Enough said.
ONly one way to find out for sure, take 500 of them, don't feed them for three days, don't let them rest for those three days and then turn them loose in the halls of Congress.
Chihuahuas confront cougar in SoCal garage
KTLA News
June 14, 2009
SAGE, Riverside County -- A woman got the surprise of her life when she walked into her garage to see why her dogs were barking. She found a full grown mountain lion.
Ana Lee Spray says her three chihuahuas were barking so loudly, she couldn't figure out what was wrong. But, she quickly got the answer staring back at her. She says the big cat appeared to be angry and began hissing at her. She picked up her pint-sized puppies and ran back into the house.
She then grabbed her video camera and took a few pictures of the caged cougar, after she called 911.
Officers with the Department of Fish and Game arrived at Spray's home in the 3900 block of San Ignacio Road a short time later and tranquilized the cat. The mountain lion ran out of the garage and had to be tranquilized a second time in Spray's yard.
Experts say the animal was likely looking for food and had his eye on the chihuahuas as a quick snack.
http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-garage-cougar,0,224308.story
I would challenge Ms. Setter to this. She gets in a room with a pit bull and I'll get in a room with a beagle. Then, someone will constantly prod each dog. We'll see who walks out.
Approximately a year ago, while walking one of my Labs at the neighborhood park a couple blocks from our home, I witnesses a pit bull engage in an unprovoked attack on a 10 year old female black lab that was sitting right next to it's owner, and not even looking in the direction of the pit bull. The pit bull was not on a leash, and the owner, a young woman, had zero voice control over the dog. The only reason the Lab did not suffer serious injury (the pit drew blood, but not a lot) was because the Lab went onto her stomach and did not resist. The owner of the pit and the owner of the Lab managed to get the pit to release the Lab after holding down the Lab for approximately 2 minutes. While I cannot be sure about the pit's age, it appeared to be somewhere between 1 to 3 years old.
We had two pit bulls roaming free in our neighborhood one day that came running up into our front yard while we were doing some work on one of our vehicles - no license or ID tags. They were friendly enough, but did provide us with a scare. We leashed them, and called Animal Control, who came and took them away. Had they been vicious, there would have been no time to get my shotgun before someone was seriously injured.
I’ve been bitten twice by one of my Labs while trying to separate them after they started fighting over a rawhide chew. They’ve not done that again for a long time.
When I was 10 our Chihuahua/Dashhound mix chased a large German Shepard out of our yard, and halfway down the block. I couldn’t stop laughing for quite a while. I just wish I had had a video camera back then.
I read somewhere that dogs really don't know how big they are, and they somehow think the are as large as the other animal that they see. This is why the three Cuihuahuas could take on the cougar.
I don't know how "they" figured this out, but it sounds plausable.
Post proof.
Bravo!
Good dog.
Let's hear some stories about goldens or labs or teacup turds protecting property like this! Oh, and not fiction like most of the posts on these threads.
Crickets...........
Pit bulls are safe.
Shoot the owners when one attacks.
It’s they that are the danger.
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